Safety device for submarines or similar vessels



FEB. 18, 1930. J. c. BECHARD SAFETY DEVICE FOR SUBh IIARINES OR SIMILAR VESSELS Filed Jun" 18. 1928 Jweph aBw/umi, JW C Patented Feb. 18, 1930 UNITED: stares JOSEPH C. IBEGHARD, OF FALL RIVER, MASSACHUSETTS SAFETY DEVICE FOR SUBMARINES OR SIMILAR VESSELS Application filed. June 18,

My invention relates to a new and useful life saving device for use in conjunction with submarines or other marine vessels.

It is an object of my invention to provide a safety device for submarines which is simple in structure and reliable in operation.

It is another object of my invention to provide a life saving device for submarine vessels which consists of auxiliary water tight life boats attached to each side of the submarine or similar vessels and which may be released from the vessel by the escaping crew.

A still further object of my invention is to provide auxiliary life boats which are at tached to the sides of the submarine and which do not interfere with the operation of the submarine during normal use, said life boats being held in water tight engagement with the'shell of the submarine and being adapted to be released from said submarine by members of the crew after their entry into the life boat, said life boat being Water tight throughout and being capable of rising to the surface.

Uther objects and advantages will appear from the detailed description which follows.

I attain these objects and advantages by means of the device illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure l is a cross sectional View taken through the submarine and showing the life saving boats attached on each side of the submarine the internal arrangement of the submarine being omitted as it is not necessary in the disclosure of my invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevational View of the life saving boat shown attached within the hollow compartments formed on each side of the submarine, the manholes on the inside walls of the submarine being shown by the cutaway portions showing the inside walls of the submarine.

Similar numerals refer to the similar parts throughout the several Views.

Referring to the drawing, 1 represents the hollow compartments formed on the sides of the submarine. These compartments may be formed by cutting away a portion of the surface of the submarine and riveting a circu- 50 lar back 2 to the top and bottom edges of the 1928. Serial No. 286,159.

opening and closing the ends of the compartments thus formed by the sides 3. The compartments formed by the concavity in the plate 2 are of sufficient depth toaccommodate the lifesaving boats l which will be more fully described hereinafter.

The life saving boats are substantially ellipsoidal in structure and are provided at the bottom with a keel portion 5 and at the top I with a manhole 6, and are of such a length and diameter as to fit within the compartments formed; As the number of men which may be rescued depends on the size of said life boat, it should be made large enough to hold ten men. The hatch 6 is provided with a manhole cover 7 which is Very securely held in place by any ordinary fastening means sufficient to maintain a water-tight closure. The plate 2 of thecompartment is provided on its mid portion with two aligned manholes 8 and 9 with theirrespectivecovers '10 and 11. As shown in Figure 11, manhole covers 10 and 11 arehingedly connected to the manholes and provided with a rabbeted edge 12 tomake a tight fit with the flange 13 of the manholes 8 and 9. The life boats 4 are secured to the submarine by means of screws passing into the anchoring plate 1% which is permanently riveted to the plate 2. A gasket 24 is provided at this jointure to make it water-tight. The life boats are provided with manholes 15 to correspond to the manholes 8 and 9 of the submarine. The manholes are reinforced with the circular member 16. Manhole covers 17 are hinged to the manhole and are provided with a rabbeted edge for fitting over said circular member. A cleat member 18 is provided on the plate 2 which abuts the keel 5 and assists in maintaining the life boats in proper alignment. A propeller 19 may be provided whereby the life boats may be operated on their own power or guarded by the same.

During the normal operation of the submarine the manholes 8 and 9 remain open at all times to avoid any loss of time in the opening of the same. In the event of mishap or damage to the submarine and it is necessary for the crew to leave the submarine, the members may crawl through the man- 100 holes 8 and 9 into the life boats 4.- on the sides of the submarine and pull the manhole covers 10 and 11 tight against the flange 13. By means of the handle 20 the covers are further fastened by the conventional bolt means 21. The covers 17 are next closed and the closure is made water tight by means 01 the bolt members 22 passing into the circular member 16. The life boat is next released from the submarine by disengaging the boat means 23 which hold the life boat fast to the anchoring plate 1a. In case the disengagement of these bolt means are not sufficient to set the life boat adrift, the handle 25 on the manhole covers 17, and which is provided with a threaded shank portion, may be turned and by abutment against the handle 20 will effect the disengagement of the life boats 4 from the submarine shell. By reason of the keel portion 5 the life boat rises to the top in the same position as shown in Figure 1.

It will-be seen from the above description that the life saving device which I here propose does not necessitate the use of divers nor does it necessitate any undersea apparatus. Furthermore, the escape from the submarine may be maneuvered entirely by the members of the crew seeking escape. Nor does the proposed device interfere with the speed, mobility, or other fighting qualities of the underseas craft.

The safety device here proposed will work in any depth of water and unlike most of the safety devices, which have heretofore been suggested, the auxiliary life boat to be used does not subject the escaping crew to excessive pressures in making their way to the surface.

All that has been said above in the description of my preferred embodiment is offered by way of illustration and not limitation. I do not wish to be limited to the exact structure of the preferred embodiment shown and described, or to any particular material used in the construction of parts, or to the design of parts, but desire protection as against any variations in structure or substitution of equivalents which utilize the principle of my invention and fall within the purview of my invention and are within the spirit and scope of the following claim.

The invention having been set forth, what is claimed as new and useful is:

A life saving device for submarine vessels or the like, said submarine vessel being provided with substantially concave compartments in the sides thereof, said life saving device comprising a boat like means having a hatch portion and a keel portion and being secured to said submarine within said concave compartments, an anchoring plate at the rear of said concave compartments to which said boat like means is secured, manhole means in said concave compartments and corresponding manhole means on the inner side of the boat like structure whereby the interior is made accessible to the crew Within the submarine, the manhole means in the submarine being provided with a cover having a rabbeted edge to secure a tight closure, said cover having a handle portion with a fiat knob, the manhole means on the boat like structure having a manhole cover adapted to fit tightly and having a handle portion threaded in said manhole cover which is capable of moving. against the knob of the handle of the manhole cover within the submarine whereby the boat like structure is disengaged fromthe submarine.

' Signed at WVhite Plains, Westchester Co., N. Y., June 14, 1928.

JOSEPH C. BEGHARD.

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